I didn't see any other good place to put stuff like this...so I created this topic for random information about Japanese culture.

For a while when I visited Japanese websites, I'd see pictures like the following:

I didn't know what they were, and I've been looking everywhere to try to find out. I just did. They're called "QR codes". They are for Japanese cell phones, so that you can read a web address into your cell phone without having to type it on the keypad. More info. can be found at:

Nico Nico Douga (http://www.nicovideo.jp/) is a popular video-sharing website in Japan. In addition to uploading and viewing videos, the site has a lot of other features that make it different from other video sites like YouTube. While watching a video, you can see other users' comments scroll across the screen. Anyone can place tags on videos, and most videos are in high quality. The site tailors to otaku tastes, and most videos are about anime, computer games, and pop music. More info. on Nico Nico Douga can be found at:

"Oricon" is the name of the Japanese company, formerly "Original Confidence", that supplies statistics and information on music and the music industry in Japan. More info. on this company can be found at the Wikipedia article http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oricon. The official Oricon website is http://www.oricon.co.jp It's a really fun site (but Japanese, so you'll need a webpage translator like the Google toolbar if you want to try to read the info and you can't read it on your own).

The English version of the Oricon Weekly Top Singles list can be found at:

Para Para (Japanese: パラパラ; also "Para-Para" or "ParaPara") is a popular Japanese solo dance. Unlike most club dancing and rave dancing, there are specific, preset movements for each song, and everyone does the same moves at once, much like line dancing. Para Para is said to have existed since the early 80's, when Europe started selling Italo Disco, Euro Disco, and later New Wave music in Japan (New Wave came about in the mid-80's), but did not achieve much popularity outside of Japan until the late 90's, when the popularity boom of para para took place. Today, it is known throughout the world, especially the Pacific Rim.

Bentō (弁当 or べんとう, Bentō?) is a single-portion takeout or home-packed meal common in Japanese cuisine. A traditional bento consists of rice, fish or meat, and one or more pickled or cooked vegetables as a side dish. Containers range from disposable mass produced to hand crafted lacquerware. Although bento are easily available in many places throughout Japan, including convenience stores, bento shops (弁当屋, bentō-ya?), train stations, and department stores, it is still common for Japanese homemakers to spend considerable time and energy producing an appealing boxed lunch.

Bento can be very elaborately arranged. Contests are often held where homemakers can compete for the most aesthetically pleasing arrangements. The food is often decorated to look like people, animals, or characters and items such as flowers and plants. This style of elaborate bento is called kyaraben.

Searching Japan
Looking for something Japanese, such as a J-pop band website, and can't find it by googling or looking on Wikipedia? Try searching the Japanese internet. It's easy to do. Instead of going to google.com, enter the following url and type your search (such as a band name):